1. Field of the Disclosure
The present disclosure relates to an airtight container for a refrigerator and a refrigerator including the airtight container, and more particularly, to an airtight container for a refrigerator and a refrigerator including the airtight container, which can be easily opened even when the airtight container is in a weak vacuum state.
2. Background
Generally, a refrigerator is an apparatus that supplies cold air generated through a freezing cycle into the storage compartments and lowers the temperature of the inside of the storage compartments to maintain the freshness of various foods for a long period of time.
Recently, the refrigerator is equipped with a separate storage compartment optimized for the characteristics of foods in addition to typical refrigeration compartment and freezer compartment. For example, an airtight container is provided to maintain the optimal freshness of vegetables for a long period.
A typical airtight container includes a case supplied with cold air and a drawer withdrawably disposed in the case and storing vegetables. In order to maintain the freshness of vegetables, when the drawer is in an insertion state into the case (i.e., when the airtight container is in a closed state), the airtightness of the airtight container has to be maintained. To this end, a vacuum pump may be further provided to maintain the inside of the airtight container at a weak vacuum state or low pressure state. In this case, a user needs to release the weak vacuum state of the airtight container to take vegetables out of the airtight container.
In a related art, a ventilation port is provided in the drawer to communicate between the inside and the outside of the airtight container, and an operation handle is provided to allow a user to control the ventilation port. However, in this structure, since the directions of the operation of the operation handle and the movement of the drawer are different from each other, there is a limitation in that the drawer has to be withdrawn in a straight-line direction after the weak vacuum state inside the airtight container is released by rotating the operation handle to take vegetables out of the airtight container.
FIG. 23 is a perspective view showing a related art airtight container or vegetable container 1000 for refrigerators. The related art vegetable container 1000 includes a case 1100 and a drawer 1300.
In a case in which the related art vegetable container 1000 is configured to have a two-box type structure, the drawer 1300 is inserted into the case 1100 in a drawer fashion. As a result, the interior of the vegetable container 1000 is hermetically sealed such that the interior of the vegetable container 1000 can be in a low vacuum state to improve freshness of the vegetables stored in the vegetable container 1000.
In the related art two-box type structure, the drawer 1300 hermetically seals the interior of the vegetable container 1000 such that foods can be stored in the vegetable container 1000 in a fresh state for a long period of time. A vacuum pump is mounted in the hermetical sealing drawer 1300 or the vegetable container 1000 to uniformly maintain vacuum in the vegetable container 1000 such that foods can be stored in the vegetable container 1000 in a fresh state for a long period of time.
In this case, however, an opening of the case 1100, through which the drawer 1300 is inserted into the case 1100, may be deformed toward the interior of the case 1100 due to the difference in pressure between the inside and the outside of the case 1100.
In a case in which the case 1100 is deformed, hermetical sealing between the drawer 1300 and the case 1100 may be released with the result that external air may be introduced into the case 1100 and, therefore, the low vacuum state in the case 1100 may be released.
In addition, when temperature in the case 1100 is lowered, dew may be formed in the case 1100.
The dew formed in the case 1100 may stay on the inner surface of the case 1100 with the result that the dew may be observed by the naked eye.
Furthermore, in a case in which the dew formed in the case 1100 drops and contacts foods stored in the vegetable container 1000, the food may become soft.
In addition, the dew formed in the case 1100 may not be discharged out of the case 1100.
Furthermore, when the inside of the case 1100 becomes a weak vacuum state, even an adult may not easily open the drawer 1300 due to a pressure difference between the inside and the outside of the case 1100.